September 6, 2008 Two escapees from the Western Kentucky Correctional Complex in Fredonia, Kentucky were caught in Georgia on Friday morning after they were pulled over for speeding on I-75 in LamarCounty.
Sgt. Mike Maynard of the Forsyth Post of the Georgia State Patrol said he stopped Jesse Sebastian and James Whisman at 9:30am as they were traveling in the southbound lanes of the Interstate. The pair was driving a Chrysler PT Cruiser which was reported stolen on Tuesday in Princeton, Kentucky. A check on the vehicle’s tag found it had also been stolen, he said.
“They were deceitful and made us work to find out who they were,” he said.
During the identification process, photos and other information was emailed across state lines to officials in Kentucky.
Maynard said the pair surrendered peacefully and were taken into custody by himself and two fellow troopers at the scene.
Both are being charged here with two counts of Theft by Receiving Stolen Property (one count for the vehicle and one for the stolen tag) and one count related to crossing state lines with stolen property. Both are also charged with giving false information and one was cited for speeding, Maynard said.
In addition to being charged with escape, Princeton police are expected to charge Sebastian and Whisman with at least three counts of burglary and theft of the vehicle, authorities there said on Friday.
The men were transported to the LamarCountyDetentionCenter on Roberta Drive.
Plans are in the works to consolidate the operations of the Griffin and Flint RiverTechnicalColleges into one single entity, BarnesvilleGeorgiaNews has learned.
In an outline of the merger given Friday morning to employees at the Griffin school's campus, officials said they expect to see the changes made sometime between January and July of next year.
According to one source, the new college would be named South Metro Tech and could be headed up by Kathy Love, current president of the Thomaston campus.
Griffin Tech Student Threatens To 'Start Shooting' If He Fails Class
September 5, 2008 A criminal trespass warning was issued Friday against a student at GriffinTechnicalCollege after he allegedly threatened to climb on the roof and start shooting if he didn’t pass his class.
According to a statement issued Friday by Spalding County Sheriff Dee Stewart, the campus was secured by investigators until the student had been located. He has since been removed from school, he said.
The Sheriff said his department takes threats of violence – even from those who may later claim to have been joking – very seriously.
The case against the unidentified male was turned over to investigators in ClaytonCounty because investigators say the threats were made there.
Another Record Enrollment Year At Gordon College
Gordon College - September 4, 2008
GordonCollege is once again experiencing record enrollment with a 4.59 percent increase this year.
Nearly 3,900 students have enrolled, up from 3,703 last fall.
“We are very pleased that more students are selecting GordonCollege as the place to begin their postsecondary education,” said Lawrence Weill, Gordon College President. “We have an outstanding faculty and staff dedicated to helping our students succeed, plus a beautiful and growing campus and of course, our varied programs of study.
Fredrick Bailey, one of 1,036 students who live on campus, attends Gordon because it suits several needs. “I visited the campus and immediately liked it,” he said. “It is affordable and I get the one-on-one attention that I need in class. I’m a student, not just someone in a class of 100.And, it is close to home - but not too close.
Bailey, a sophomore, hopes to continue at Gordon, earn a degree in education and eventually teach fifth grade.
GordonCollege became a part of the University System of Georgia in 1972 with 550 students. Through the years the campus has grown and the curriculum has expanded to offer more than 80 programs of study.
The school’s first bachelor degree – early childhood education – will be awarded to a group of 30 teacher-candidates in May of next year. In 2010, the school will begin offering a bachelor degree in nursing.
Gordon opened its newest apartment-style residential housing complex, GordonVillage, this year and anticipates opening its new Student Success and RetentionCenter in the fall. The Center will contain expanded study and counseling areas and an expanded bookstore that will be open to the public.
Plans also call for construction of a new Nursing and Allied Health building that will be completed in 2009 to meet the needs of the school’s growing nursing and health programs of study.
The 3rd annual Farm Heritage Day will be held on Saturday, September 13th from 10:00am until 5:00pm at the Chestnut Oak Center, located near the intersection of Hwy 19 and Sandefur Road (south of Zebulon), across from the Georgia Baptist Children’s Home.
The event is sponsored by the Pike County Horse Club and the Pike Agribusiness Authority and will feature games, prizes, good food, and fun for folks of all ages. Visitors will see mules plowing and horses pulling wagons. Attendees will also be able to observe horse and horsemanship demonstrations.
Wednesday School Lockdown A Precautionary Measure, Officials Say
September 3, 2008
LamarCounty schools were locked down for several hours this afternoon while authorities investigated reports of an armed man walking alongside Hwy 341.
“The call we got was that a guy was seen walking on the four-lane with a gun,” Barnesville Police Investigator Dickie Carreker said late this afternoon.
The subject, however, managed to elude authorities and no determination has been made at this time on the weapons allegations, Carreker noted.
“We’ve been in lockdown for most of the afternoon on the counsel of the Barnesville PD,” local schools Superintendent Bill Truby confirmed at just after 3:00pm. “There was some concern about a very unsafe environment in the community.”
Dr. Truby said several extra-curricular activities had been cancelled as a result of today’s developments. “We’re just waiting for the all-clear so we can get back to our normal activities,” he concluded.
All four LamarCounty schools were involved, he said.
Four Are Rescued Near Sprewell Bluff
Four persons from Barnesville were rescued over the holiday weekend after they were stranded on the Flint River between the Hwy. 36 bridge and Sprewell’s Bluff, according to a report by WTGA in Thomaston.
Justin Fallin, Brandy Evans, Kalay Adkerson and Ethan Jones were located after a two-hour search conducted by Upson Fire & Rescue and the Thurston Fire Department.
A command post was established on South Earls Road, they said.
MonroeCountyHospital has suspended the hospital privileges of a Macon podiatrist after he was jailed for allegedly crippling patients and refusing to pay a $3.9 million civil judgment.
According to a report published by griffinjournal.com, Dr. George Vito turned himself in to U.S. Marshals on Aug. 8 after being held in civil contempt. Vito has reportedly refused to pay $3.9 million in damages for performing illegal experimental surgeries which allegedly crippled seven victims.
